Gabe's Leadville Trail Run 100 Plan

Race Plan: Leadville Trail Run 100

Backstory

I’ve been AWOL from the team for the last few months, so let me catch you up. I signed up for Leadville when I lived at around 5,000ft in Utah -- I wasn’t planning to live near sea level. This year has brought many changes. I switched jobs and we moved from Utah back to California to the San Diego area. I swore I was done with California – except if an opportunity to move back to San Diego presented itself. San Diego is my favorite place in the continental US, and I’m super stoked to be back. I’ve made frequent trips to the UK for the new gig. To make the transition even more challenging, my oldest daughter, Skye, was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes in late April. We’ve been adjusting to the new normal that involves counting carbs before meals and insulin injections. Therefore, I’ve taken a “minimalist” ultra-training approach based on the box life has given me. More on that later.

The Leadville Trail Run 100 is my only DNF. If you’ve been following my intrepid tale, you’ll recall that in 2017 I attempted the Leadman, which is completing all five of the Leadville branded races. I made it through all the races and the only thing standing between me and the Leadman Axe was this race. I was having a pretty good day until around mile 25 when I stepped in a gopher hole hidden under tall grass. My knee bent backwards. By the time I got to the turnaround point at Winfield, I could hardly walk. I actually made it before the cutoff and sat there drinking Coke hoping a miracle would occur. It did not. I decided to live to run another day.

This is a redemption race to get the Leadville monkey off my back.

This year has a strong showing from EN with @tim cronk , @Clark Mitchell, and @Tim Sullivan lining up. @Mark Cardinale is pacing me.

Goals

The Leadville Trail 100 is one of the most storied 100s, the legendary “Race Across the Sky.” It is featured almost like a character in Born to Run. That book made me think I should try an ultra and started this whole epic and crazy journey for me. 

The crux of the race is Hope Pass, taking runners over Hope Pass and back at over 12,000ft. The DNF rate for Leadville is much higher than most 100s at about 50%. That is in large measure because of Hope Pass.

My goals are simple:

·       Run grateful because I am lucky motherfucker to be able to do this epic and stupid shit. 

·       This race is dedicated to my daughter Skye, who was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes earlier this year. The doctors say she could still run a marathon. But I know her life is going to be more challenging that I would have ever wanted for her. She'll be right there in my heart pushing me not to quit.

·       Get my damn buckle and don’t take any stupid risks. I think about stepping in that fucking gopher hole all the time. I was pushing trying to save minutes and running in tall grass where I couldn’t see where I was stepping. I have 30 hours to finish. If it takes me 29:59:59, I’ll take it.

Keys to the Race

·       Take what the day gives me. A lot can go right or wrong in 100 miles. The altitude is likely to be a wild card. I was pleasantly surprised at the Run Camp that the altitude didn’t have a big impact on me. Apparently, running in the heat of the day can stimulate the same adaption as training at altitude. I’ve been running mostly mid-day since my new job starts with early calls to the UK. San Diego sun is super intense.

·       Run the flats easy with frequent hiking breaks. For a mountainous 100, Leadville actually has a lot of flat, runnable miles. My take is that many runners ruin their day by hammering the relatively flat first 40 miles out to Twin Lakes and then get massacred on Hope Pass.

·       Save my legs on the climbs by using my trekking poles. I’ll start using them from the earliest legitimate climb at Sugerloaf. I’ll also use them on the “false flat” section from Outward Bound to the descent into Twin Lakes. I recently upgraded to Leki poles. They have this glove system that clips into the poles. Unlike my Black Diamond poles, I found I can comfortably run with them

·       Capture free speed on the descents. Like triathletes, ultrarunners are terrible descenders. It is a technical skill that must be practiced. I think all the descents at Leadville are runnable, even Hope Pass. The section where you can really make up time is the reverse of the “false flat” after the climb out of Twin Lakes. I’m guessing many runners will hike this section.

·       Leverage having a wicked smart pacer with Mark Cardinale. Seriously, the dude is a BAMF. It will be like having a coach out there on the course who knows all the highs and lows of endurance sports. Leadville also lets pacers mule, which means carry your shit. The nighttime section from Twin Lakes until sunrise will be a low point for me. I’ll let Mark pull me through it.

Race Plan

Leadville 100 Race Plan contains my detailed plan for each section, drop bags, and crew/pacers. I based my times off the data I gathered pre-running sections of the course.

Nutrition Strategy

I struggled with nutrition the back half of the Bear 100 and Wasatch 100. I ended up getting most of my calories from Coke the last 50 miles. For me, sports nutrition works the first 50 miles. Then my palate is saturated, and I can’t take it anymore. Marvin Sandoval turned me on the Spring Energy Nutrition. It’s made from real food and tastes unbelievable good. Seriously, I look forward to eating it. I’ll use the gels and electrolyte drink to get calories between aid stations. Then I’ll eat real food at the aid stations. I’ll have pre-flattened bottles of Coke in my drop bags so I can take them with me on the return trip. My target is about 250 calories per hour while I can do math. Then it will be choke down whatever I can.

Conclusion

Now I just have to go do it in a week. My bib is 1000 – what a great number! Follow along as me, Tim Cronk, Clark Mitchell, and Tim Sullivan show how EN does Leadville!